


Ever Forward

by Cephy



Category: Tales of the Abyss
Genre: Conspiracy, Fix-It, Gen, Minor Character(s), Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-07-20
Updated: 2010-01-02
Packaged: 2017-10-06 07:41:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 10,298
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/51291
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cephy/pseuds/Cephy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>They'd saved the world, but that was only the beginning.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

"_Luke_!"

She thought it was probably Guy yelling-- he was the one struggling against Jade's restraining hold, at least, though that only lasted until the first wave of the blast reached them, shaking the stone beneath their feet. Natalia manged to stay upright, though it was a near thing; some of the others weren't so lucky.

The island was burning-- Hod was crumbling again, under the pressure of the power they'd released. There was light burning out of its heart, towards the sky, a light which had burst forth with a roar like a mountain splitting. Like Akzeriuth falling. It pulsed still, sending little lightning shocks through the air.

It was coming from the platform on which they'd fought Van. On which they'd left Luke. Natalia watched as the fire seemed to burn into the very stones, and tried to imagine anything surviving it.

"We have to go. _Now_," Jade snapped, twisting Guy's shoulder and _pushing_\-- as if on cue, the walkway gave another shudder, another shower of dust, and from somewhere not too distant there came an ominous _crack_. Natalia moved to help Anise back to her feet, found Tear on her other side, and in a huddled line they moved as fast as their unsteady footing allowed through the seemingly endless halls and tunnels.

They finally emerged to find a very worried Noelle waiting for them; the Albiore was aloft almost before the hatch was fully closed.

They watched Hod burn from the safety of a field of selenias, waiting in vain for the the white glare to fade into dusk, for the last rumble to fall silent. Long before that happened, Anise staggered away and let herself fall; Jade moved next, pulling food from their packs and, after one considering look, shaking his head and handing it around cold. They ate mechanically, too numb to argue, too _tired_\-- guards and monsters, and Legretta, and Sync, and _Van_\--

Natalia couldn't have said whether she was the first to fall asleep, but thankfully she did not dream.

She woke to voices close by, and silence in the distance; she opened her eyes to see Guy standing several paces away, with Jade's hand unyielding around his wrist. For a moment of lingering muzziness, Natalia wondered if she had gone back in time.

"-- too dangerous," Jade was saying, low and sharp and practical. "All the pathways will be gone. Even if by some miracle you made it in, you would never come back out again. The city is nothing but a death trap--"

"Yeah, and he's stuck there in it," Guy replied stubbornly, with a clear faith that had Natalia biting her lip. "I can--"

"What," Jade said flatly. "Get yourself killed, too?"

"He's _not_ dead," Guy shouted, rounding on Jade with fists clenched. "He's _not_."

"Guy," Natalia said, "please."

He turned on her then, face flushed with enough desperate anger that she wanted to cringe-- but that was not what the situation needed. She stood slowly, acutely feeling every aching muscle, every scrape and cut, every torn seam and stained hem, and she lifted her chin to meet his eyes unflinchingly. "Please," she repeated.

He held her gaze for just a moment, before looking back to Jade-- Jade, who hadn't released his hold, who was looking on with what would seem like disinterest to anyone who didn't know him. Guy looked to Tear, and Anise, neither of whom would meet his eyes. Finally, he turned to Natalia again, the anger starting to break into something far more fragile, and Natalia didn't let herself look away.

In the end, Guy was the one that broke. He jerked his arm and Jade released him readily, though his eyes were watchful-- needlessly so, since when Guy turned on his heel and started walking, it was away from Hod and towards the Albiore, long legs eating up the ground and shoulders hunched. He didn't look back.

They went to Baticul first; they owed Luke's family that much. The look on Suzanne's face nearly broke her heart, but Natalia steeled herself and somehow managed to finish the tale to its end. They deserved to know what had happened, but most of all they deserved to know just how much Luke had done to save them all.

When she was through, the Duke stood and left without a word. Suzanne was quiet for a long time, too-- and then she drew a shaky breath and asked about Asch, and Natalia found her voice had abandoned her after all.

The White Knights wore black armbands, and an announcement was read, and all the bells in the city tolled at once in recognition. And the very next day, there was cheering in the streets, clearly audible all the way in the palace-- people laughing and celebrating the news that they were safe once more. Natalia listened, and reminded herself that it was _good_, it was good that her people were hoping again. She refused to be angry at them for being happy. It wasn't their fault that-- that they didn't really understand.

Anise and Jade both left within days of their arrival, citing various duties. She couldn't resent them for the excuse, since in all honesty it _wasn't_ one at all. With the war so recently over, the truce still testing its legs, the world reeling from the loss of the Score-- Natalia herself was having to work near non-stop to deal with the aftermath. In the end, she bade them well and sent them off with the best wishes of Kimlasca.

Tear left not long after, without a word beyond the note left in her borrowed room. She'd been very quiet since Hod, not saying much to anyone, and after some thought, Natalia dispatched letters to a few contacts in Daath.

Guy was the last, leaving it long enough that she had almost begun to hope-- but he was waiting for her as she left the audience hall, leaning against one of the pillars in a heartbreakingly familiar manner. "I'm going back to Malkuth," he said when she came close enough. He straightened; his arms were folded across his chest, making him look unusually forbidding, or maybe it was just that he wasn't smiling anymore. "I got a letter from His Majesty." He glanced away, glanced back. "I'm sure I'll be sent back here on some sort of ambassadorial duties, so it's not like I'm leaving for good, but right now I've got to go."

"Of course," she replied weakly. They hadn't really had time to talk, about _anything_, but mostly about what had happened at-- "I understand."

He looked at her a moment longer, then gave a single sharp nod and turned away. She found herself calling after him before he'd gone more than a handful of steps.

"Guy-- I'm sorry. About--"

He turned back-- and there was his smile, at last, a little strained but nonetheless real. "No, you were right. I wouldn't have done anything but get myself stuck, or killed. I wouldn't have had a clue where to start looking for him." He let out a heavy breath, drew another in. "And you know, I don't think he would have been there for me to find, anyway."

The words stung-- she'd heard them before, but she hadn't expected them from him. It stung to hear him give up.

But when he turned to leave again, it was with a little wave over his shoulder and still with that smile on his lips. "He'll find his way back to us, eventually," he said by way of farewell. "We'll just have to be patient until then."

She watched him go until someone called her from behind-- never-ending, the things that needed attention. Food allotment for the replicas, this time, maybe, or the state of the border guards, or--

When she looked again, he was gone.


	2. Chapter 2

Yulia City was not quite like she remembered. It was brighter, certainly, with clear sunlight coming down through the skylights instead of the thick shadows of the Qliphoth— not a bad change, but still different. It was louder, too, with the tourists gawking and the pilgrims wanting to study and the refuges from St. Binah who had just never left. It was smaller, or at least felt like it.

It didn't quite feel like home, anymore. In the garden, the selenias only bloomed at night.

Her grandfather looked older in the harsh light of the upper world, or maybe that was the strange, wounded look in his eyes. He looked uncertain, for the first time that she could remember. He looked _betrayed_, and she could understand that, a little, because she had lived her life by the Score, too. But he hadn't seen first-hand the myriad ways in which it had let them all down. It wasn't that he was clinging to the old ways, or fighting her when she insisted that things had to change-- he had simply lived the Score for too many years to know where to begin living without it.

Which left-- her.

"Don't worry," she heard herself say. "We'll find a way." And the relief on the faces around her made her breath tighten in her throat.

The first step was to go through their resources, their teachings, and find something to build from. To create an entirely new belief system from scratch would be impossible, both in terms of the actual creation and in terms of getting the people to support it. But if they could somehow start from within the current system and just make a shift in a new direction—

She walked the streets, talking to her neighbours, the tourists, the pilgrims. She listened to their suggestions and enlisted their help. It was a long, thankless task for the most part, and it often kept her busy from before sunrise long into the night hours. So busy that she hardly had time to think about--

_I love you._

About anything other than her work. And it helped, a little, to ease the tightness in her chest that felt like guilt, even though she knew she had nothing to feel guilty about. She was doing her best, doing more than most, doing everything she could to bring about a bright new world for everyone, original and replica alike, just like he would have wanted, and there was nothing, _nothing_ she could have done to save—

Tear sighed, opening her eyes. She pushed back the sheet and, giving up on sleep, stepped out into the garden. The selenias were open, casting their silvery shadows, and she wandered through them to where Van's tiny stone marker stood. Folding to her knees, she closed her eyes briefly in remembrance, then opened them again. It was obvious, she thought resignedly, that she was going to get no peace until she worked this through. Best to get it over with.

Obviously she did feel guilty over something. But what, exactly?

_I love you._

Was it that she'd never really told him? She'd said it, right before— but he couldn't possibly have heard her. She hadn't been brave enough to say it to his face. And now he was gone, and she might not ever have that chance again. Maybe the guilt was from the faint relief that she now wouldn't_ have _to tell him.

Or maybe it was from the nagging thought that she shouldn't have told him, at all.

She'd been so _sure_, in that moment when he was leaving them, being brave and noble and so much more than he'd started out as. She'd been so proud of him, and scared for him, and still hurting from the unexpected gaping hole where Van had been. She felt something for him, that much was obvious, but whether it was actually _love_\--

_Do I? Did I really?_

The selenias were starting to close with the dawn when she breathed a faint sigh and shook her head, thoughts still jumbled. Starting out across the garden, she found her attention caught by the delicate blooms, found herself tracing the shape of the petals with her eyes. They were beautiful beneath the moon, but gone so quickly. Yet even with all the changes in the world they still bloomed, night after night, and for the moment at least— they were beautiful.

She stared for a long time at the last of the flowers, stared until it had folded away completely, then looked up at the brightening skylight. Nodding, she took a deep breath and pushed determinedly to her feet. Luke was gone. For the moment, at least, he was gone. And for the moment, at least, she had too much to do to let herself be distracted like this.

For the moment, that would have to do.

She'd have time enough to figure it out when she saw him again.


	3. Chapter 3

Walking through the gates of Daath, Guy had to shake his head. The city had the same stone buildings, the same robed figures walking the streets, the same shadow of the cathedral cast over everything below. The place still _felt_ the same, still had the vague sense of serenity that came from being centered around a church. It was enough to make him want to check over his shoulder for the Oracle Knights that had to be coming up from behind to arrest him. Old habits, and all.

It did maybe feel a bit more hopeful than it had the first few months after everything had gone to hell and come back again, or maybe that was just wishful thinking.

He went straight to the main chapel, zeroing in on the familiar figures standing by the altar. He nodded a respectful greeting to Tritheim and his shadow when he came close enough. "Grand Maestro. Florian." Then, with a faint smirk, he looked down to the side. "Oh, and you."

Anise stuck out her tongue at him. "Well, if it isn't the Emperor's little messenger boy," she teased, planting fists on hips. "He gave you time off from walking the rappigs? Must be important."

Florian giggled quietly, and Guy shot the kid a sidelong grin before sobering. "There might be something happening in Malkuth," he started. "His Majesty thought you should hear it directly instead of in writing. It's all just rumours and minor incidents at this point, but it all seems a little too neat to be coincidence."

Settling one hip against a pillar, he folded his arms and laid the story out for them. The reports of people gathering in the isolated parts of the countryside— people always gone when patrols came around, leaving behind only smoldering firepits and scattered debris. The increasing number of posters with anti-Order and pro-Score slogans. The small churches broken into and ransacked, though thankfully with no one there to get hurt in the process.

"It's impossible to say whether it'll actually go anywhere," Guy finished. "This certainly isn't the first time this sort of thing has happened, and the rest have burned out on their own. But this one—" He hesitated, then shook his head. "I don't know. I've got a bad feeling about it, and Jade's been more caustic than usual lately so I know he's worried too." He shrugged. "We thought you should know."

Anise scowled. "Boo. I thought we'd dealt with all of that already. It really seemed like people were starting to come around." She heaved a heavy sigh. "I should have known it wouldn't be so easy."

Tritheim was also frowning, looking thoughtful. "Have there been any clues as to why this might be happening now?"

Guy grimaced, running a hand through his hair. "That's just the thing. From what we heard right at the beginning, it seemed like there was pretty much one person behind it all. But since then we've been trying to get details and it's like the guy doesn't exist anymore." He shook his head, frustrated. "That particular set of rumours just stopped cold."

"Rumours don't generally do that," Anise pointed out quietly. "They fade out or get replaced, they don't disappear."

Guy nodded slowly. "Yeah, exactly."

"We'll keep our ears open," Tritheim promised. "Out from under Colonel Curtiss' watchful eyes, the rumour mill might be a little less guarded."

"Yeah, I'll get a few people out to check on it. Thanks, Guy," Anise added. Guy nodded, and left a few minutes later with a fresh packet of letters tucked under his arm and his skin still crawling from Anise's attempted hug. Ah, he thought, the life of a hero.

A few deliveries later, he was settled comfortably in the Albiore's co-pilot chair and on his way home again, idly watching the ground race by below. He sat up when his gaze snagged on some familiar scenery, though, and reached out to tap Noelle's seat— about as close as he could get to her shoulder. "Would you mind setting down here for a minute?"

Noelle glanced down, then glanced back at him and wordlessly started the landing sequence. Guy hopped out as soon as the engines cut, casting a quick eye around for monsters before starting to walk. He went right up to the edge of the cliff, looking down at the ocean and the tumbled ruins breaking the waves. Sighing, he shook his head at the empty air.

"I can't believe it's been a year," he said quietly. "How long are you planning on dragging this out, Luke? Come on, already."

He'd been there— he'd lost count, really. As often as he could manage between duties, which had become less and less as the months went on. Every time he saw them, the ruins looked a little more desolate. He traced the shape of the spires with his eyes, as always, helpless not to try and see in them the home he had once lost.

He closed his eyes, just for a second, to better feel the wind coming off the ocean. "All right," he said without looking, "you just take your time. You know where to find me when you get back."

He heard Noelle starting the engines for him as he turned to leave.


	4. Chapter 4

For the first time in a very tightly controlled two years, there were armed soldiers guarding prisoners at the border.

Jade walked the line of them, noting which ones met his eyes, which ones flinched as he came close, which ones held themselves the straightest. Sorting out the ones that would glower silently under questioning from the ones that would protest their innocence the loudest, from the ones that could likely be made to talk but equally likely didn't know anything of value. Not that many of any variety, in total, but after so much searching without any actual bodies to show for it, even a few prisoners was an improvement.

Just behind them, his men were finishing their search of the last few crates, marking two more with a big red 'x' and moving them to sit with more the same. Jade did a quick mental tally, and by the end noticed his hands tightening into fists in the confines of his pockets. With a flex of will he made them relax again.

Thirteen large crates carrying assorted weapons, and despite routine searches they would have slipped right through the border if it hadn't been for freak chance. Impossible to say which port they would have ended up in after that-- and the state of the world was still fragile enough that one sacked village could mean a renewed cry for war all around. Too many people had worked too hard to keep that from happening; it would be annoying to have the effort wasted.

It was enough to make a body wonder if someone in the border guard unit _wanted_ the war to start again.

There was no proof of that, though. Not yet; not ever, at the rate they were going. The entire investigation was dragging on far longer than any of them had hoped, with just enough information coming to light to make it clear that it wasn't over, but nothing to actually take action on.

Jade, loathe though he was to admit it, was frustrated.

A significant portion of the army had been dedicated to patrolling the countryside around the city. Guy was being run off his feet carrying messages, issuing orders, being the Emperor's eyes and ears among the nobles. Jade himself had barely seen the right side of sunrise in months, poring over reports and maps until his eyes were more red than usual, working just out of sight as always to ensure that the the country continued to run smoothly. _Everyone_ was working non-stop to convince the people that the peace needed to be kept, that it could be kept, that they were better off now that the Score was gone.

One might think, given all of that— one might think that they would have more to show for all of their efforts.

Even outside of Malkuth's borders— Anise was working hard to reformat the order, with a powerful ally in Tritheim. Natalia, with Cecille working as her mouthpiece and envoy, was being very vocal about forging ties with their former enemies, and while the populace was behind her, as always, it still felt somehow fragile. Tear had done wonders from Yulia City but it just wasn't spreading, suppressed in no small part by the rumours and suspicions that simply would not be rooted out.

There was one figure at the heart of it. Jade was sure of that, though he had no proof to support his conviction. But any movement died quickly without a focus. It was simply human nature: given direction and encouragement, people became the sheep they were at heart and followed the leader, unless another leader was calling out different orders, confusing the issue. That, Jade was sure, was what was happening here.

But they had never been able to catch anyone in the act. Whenever they thought they were getting close, it all unraveled in their hands. All of their attempts to get someone on the inside had failed.

But this— the line of prisoners, radical anti-Kimlascan extremists smuggling weapons under the noses of the army— this was their chance. Jade couldn't be certain just how their group related to the issue of the elusive pro-Score cult, but it was related, that much he was sure of. Which meant that at long last they had a starting point; a crack in the armour. And if it took one or two of the more stubborn resistors disappearing quietly in the night, well.

Such were the risks of the long and treacherous road to peace.

Good humour mostly restored for the moment, Jade smiled to himself and turned away.


	5. Chapter 5

When the invitation was delivered, Guy nearly threw it out.

_In recognition and memorial_, it read. _Luke fon Fabre's twentieth birthday._ Written out in gilt script on heavy, embossed paper, wrapped with ribbon and sealed with the King's own stamp— Guy threw it across the table and then pushed his breakfast after it, all of a sudden not feeling very hungry.

He saw a similar letter on Jade's desk when he checked in later that morning. The seal had been broken, the letter read. "You're not going to that, are you?"

Jade answered with an extravagant shrug. "I expect I'll be far too busy to attend. Though I'm sure the food will be excellent," he added thoughtfully, and Guy rolled his eyes.

"Come on," he said hotly. "Go and stand around while people who didn't even know him drink the King's wine and act like they've lost something?" Guy shook his head. "It's ridiculous. And it's not what he would have wanted, even if he was dead. I refuse to be a part of it."

"Yes, I rather imagined you might." Jade blinked up at him mildly. "What will you do, then?"

Guy blinked. "What?"

"It's your best friend's twentieth birthday. His coming of age. Surely you weren't going to let it pass completely unmarked?"

"I— well, no. I mean—"

"Ah, good. Do let me know what you're planning, then, so I can put it on my schedule."

Guy left the office feeling a bit confused and a bit like he'd just agreed to something he didn't quite understand. Which was pretty common after talking with Jade, to be honest, but still a little disorienting. He went home, sat down at his desk— then decisively reached for a pen and started to write.

Two weeks later, he and Jade were boarding the Albiore, giving their greetings to Tear and Anise, strapping in for the flight to Baticul to get Natalia. They landed at Tataroo Valley mid-afternoon, near the ruins. And Guy knew that it probably looked like some sort of a private memorial, especially in the others' eyes, but it didn't feel like he was breaking his promise. He wasn't there to mourn Luke, or remember what he _was_. He was there to wish his friend a happy birthday, and maybe remind him, yet again, that he had people waiting for him to come home.

He closed his eyes while Tear sang, and tried to send his own thoughts out on the notes. And if he maybe held his breath a little when the last echo faded away, no one seemed to notice.

Natalia was the one who broke the silence. "He didn't come," she said, quiet enough that she might have been talking to herself. Her next words were stronger. "You know you would all be welcome at Luke's coming-of-age ceremony at the Manor tomorrow. It wouldn't be any trouble to provide lodging for you, if you wanted to—" 

"I'm not interested in some ceremony in front of Luke's grave," Tear said bluntly. Guy could only agree.

The moon was high; the field of selenias seemed to glow as the shadows started to deepen. It was a long time before Jade, ever the realist, broke the silence again. "We should go. The valley is dangerous at night."

Like they hadn't handled it before, Guy thought wryly, though after one last, lingering look he turned to leave with all the rest.

And heard Tear gasp, behind him.

For a moment, Guy couldn't believe his eyes. If it weren't for the stunned looks on everyone else's faces, the complete and utter silence, Guy might have thought himself hallucinating. Might have thought he'd just dreamed the last three years entirely. Because there was Luke, walking out towards them like it hadn't been _three years_, just walking slow and casual through the flowers. His hair was different— three years of growth, maybe— and where did he get those clothes, but it was _him_, it was, no doubt about it.

He'd always believed Luke would come back. Never doubted it. But it was another thing entirely to see it happen right in front of his eyes, without so much as a single firework to mark the occasion.

"Luke," he heard Tear say. Sounding about as overwhelmed as Guy felt. "You— you're here."

Luke took a slow breath, and when he spoke, he seemed— off. A little distant, dazed. "This place has a nice view of Hod," he said with a glance around. "And besides— I made a promise."

The wind off the ocean smelled of salt and empty spaces; it hit them in a gust and made Luke's new coat flap out behind him. And Guy saw the Key of Lorelei strapped to Luke's back, hidden until that moment.

It probably meant nothing. He'd simply carried it back with him from wherever he'd been— but when Guy happened to glance over at Jade, he found the older man also looking at the Key, his eyes narrow and sharp for the instant before he became all bland smiles and bemused eyebrows as usual. It was enough to set Guy's mind buzzing, because he'd long since learned to trust Jade's instincts, and if Jade thought something wasn't quite right—

But it was hard to keep any kind of suspicion alive when Luke blinked, blinked again, and then seemed to come _alive_, a broad grin splitting his face. Guy quite suddenly had an armful of his best friend, and _damn_ did that ever feel good. Something seemed to click, something long empty and aching was finally filled. He wrapped both arms around Luke's shoulders and closed his eyes, just hanging on.


	6. Chapter 6

It was good to see him again. He looked well-- he didn't seem to have been injured at all by his long absence, wherever he'd been, and after that first minute passed he seemed just like his old self. The one she'd actually liked, anyway.

He hugged her back when she stepped up and put both arms around his shoulders, and that-- was good. He was warm. Her head fit comfortably into the crook of his shoulder.

But there should have been more. If all the stories were to be believed, she should have been feeling more.

She pulled back from him, looked up and met his eyes-- which blinked back down at her in a combination of affection and the bright cheer she had worried at one point he'd lost forever. But nothing more, and his hands on her shoulder were casual, loose. She looked at him, and waited to feel--

And it was so simple, really. Maybe it was the three years gone between them, maybe it was just having him there to put things in perspective at last, but all of the confusion was gone. She was happy to see him, she felt warmly about him, and that-- was all. And so what if it wasn't _love_, like all of those ridiculous stories said. He was still important to her, and he was back.

So she smiled at him, and he smiled at her, and that was enough.

He moved on to hug each of the others in turn-- even Jade, to his obvious surprise. It seemed that he might have held Natalia a little too close, a little too long, but surely she was imagining things.

Noelle had to wipe her eyes before she could take off. Guy couldn't seem to stop grinning to himself, glancing over at Luke every few seconds. Luke himself was absolutely still in his seat, which was odd for him. He was simply staring out the porthole, gazing off into the darkening sky with a strange little smile on his face.

Curious, Tear followed his eyes, and found herself looking at the fon belt.

She looked back at Luke, at the dreamy smile and faraway look in his eyes, and felt cold though she couldn't have quite said why.

They flew through the night, which hadn't been the original plan-- they'd intended to spend the night in Chesedonia and be on their various ways in the morning-- but the situation had changed and Noelle assured them that it was all right. They left her outside the city, yawning and red-eyed but still smiling as she headed off to her little cabin to sleep.

"You're going to crash your own party," Guy said when they walked through the gates of Baticul, clapping Luke on the shoulder and looking far too pleased by the prospect. Considering how much criticism Guy had taken over the years for refusing to believe Luke was dead, Tear couldn't quite begrudge him the satisfaction of proving himself right. "Happy birthday, by the way."

"Thanks," Luke said automatically, then blinked, focused, and frowned. "Wait, what? What's going on?" Luke looked up and up towards the top of the city as they started towards the elevator.

"Father had a ceremony arranged in your honour," Natalia explained. "It's rather lucky, actually, because now we can make it a celebration of your return."

Luke's frown only deepened. "No," he said shortly. "I don't want any ceremony."

Natalia looked at him a little uncertainly. "But-- Luke, surely you wouldn't begrudge your family and your people the chance to express their happiness that you're safely returned home."

The frown stayed in place for a second more, then began to fade, and Luke bowed his head with a sharp sigh. When he lifted it again, he was wearing a somewhat sheepish smile; he lifted one hand to rub at his hair in a very familiar gesture. "Yeah, I guess not. Sorry. I'm just a bit tired, I guess."

"Maybe we should stop at the inn before going up to the manor?" Guy suggested, sounding concerned. "You know that no one's going to give you a chance to breathe once we get there."

"No," Luke said, "it's fine. I'd like to see Mother as soon as possible, anyway." He glanced at Natalia. "How is she?"

"She's had her good days and bad days," Natalia answered quietly. "It was hardest for her right at the start, of course, but she has improved since then. And I'm sure seeing you again will do more for her than any doctor ever could," she finished with a smile, which Luke returned.

"Yeah," he said, looking up once more. "Let's hope so."

The doors of the manor were open when they reached the city's top level, with maids in new uniforms standing to either side waiting to welcome guests. Both of them gasped in shock when they saw Luke walking up to them, hands rising in unison to cover their mouths.

"Master Luke!"

After that, it wasn't long before the entire manor had heard the news and come crowding around to see if it was true, all of them shouting enough to make the sound bounce off the walls. The tumult only dulled when Duke Fabre cut through the crowd, the servants moving aside with low bows. The Duke stopped before Luke, hands hooking to rest at his belt-- a soldier's move, Tear recognized it from her brother. Luke, whether consciously or not, echoed the gesture, and the two regarded each other solemnly as the hall around them slowly became silence.

In the end, the Duke didn't say anything, just gestured and turned, leaving Luke to follow. By the time the two of them reappeared, the final guests had long since arrived and the celebration was well underway, with a certain excited tension to it that probably wouldn't have been there the day before. Someone actually broke into applause when they spotted Luke, which prompted the rest to join in; Luke took it with an embarrassed laugh and a little wave.

Tear studied him carefully. His eyes were suspiciously bright, and his grin a little shaky at the edges, but there was nothing to indicate that his reunion with his mother had not gone well. In fact, he went forward to greet his uncle the King with every indication of happiness.

The line of well-wishers seemed endless, however; Luke eventually bulled his way through the crowd to the first of the tables in the dining hall. Extra places had been hastily set for him and his guests, no doubt displacing someone but under the circumstances no one was complaining. Eventually, everyone followed his example and took their seats, prompting the servants to begin bringing out the meal.

Luke ate with the enthusiasm of someone who hadn't had a decent meal in a long time, prompting an elbow in the side and a low comment from Guy. Luke just shrugged and kept eating. After the meal, there were speeches-- Tear had to admit herself impressed that so many of the speakers had revised their words so quickly, because the speeches they gave were certainly not the ones they had planned that morning. But it dragged on, and on, until Anise was nodding in her seat and Luke's face had started to go pinched in another version of his earlier frown.

Eventually, he leaned over and murmured something to his father-- who frowned in a very similar way and shook his head, prompting Luke's expression to darken further. They muttered back and forth at each other for several minutes, while the other nobles and guests sipped drinks and acted like they weren't watching the entire situation with keen interest.

The banquet was over before things came to head. The guests were milling; Luke made a move towards the door and his father made a curt gesture to keep him still, which Luke ignored. "I don't have time for this," Tear heard him growl, before he turned and quite simply _left_.

Tear followed as far as the archway leading onto the balcony before it felt like she was intruding. She watched from that small distance as Luke looked up at the sky again, breathing deeply until his face slowly relaxed.

A footstep sounded at her back-- deliberate, because Guy didn't make sound unless he wanted to. She appreciated the gesture even though she'd known he was there since they both left the main hall. "He's-- different," Guy said, and gave an uncertain little laugh. "He actually kind of reminds me of--"

"Yes," Tear said. "He does."

She heard Guy sigh as he came forward to lean against the wall across from her, and they let the silence hold for a while. The gala behind them was a low murmur of sound through the stone.

"He didn't come back for us, did he?" Guy eventually said, voice low. "I mean, he didn't just-- _come back_. There's something going on."

Tear looked at him, thought about the words, but didn't answer. Guy wasn't looking at her anyway, his attention focused on the shadowed figure near the railing. And eventually, she returned her attention there as well, and they waited.

That much, at least, was familiar.


	7. Chapter 7

"We need to talk."

Natalia blinked, taken aback by the serious tone in Luke's voice. She had of course noticed his departure from the dining hall earlier—everyone in the room had noticed—but had been prevented from joining Guy and Tear in following him thanks to her duties as hostess. In her aunt's continued illness, someone had to fill the role, after all.

She had never before wished to be free of her responsibilities, but at that moment—she came close.

Now, however, it was over; the guests had returned to their homes, the servants were busily cleaning up in their wake, and the Duke was seeing his wife safely to bed. Luke had seized on the chance, and taken them all out to the courtyard that had seen so much of his life, once upon a time.

"Talk?" Guy repeated. "About what?"

"About what's going on with the Score," came the surprising answer, "but mostly about what you're all doing about it."

"We've made a lot of progress," Guy started after a beat. "And a lot of people have taken really well to living without the Score's guidance. But there's some-- we think it's a single group that's causing most of the trouble, but—"

"Yes, I know about them. Those idiots."

The heat in his voice took them all aback, made Guy's voice fade. Jade cleared his throat and continued in Guy's place. "The issue at present is that we can't find them to see that their influence is stopped."

Natalia's heart jumped into her throat as an all-too-familiar smirk bloomed on Luke's face. "You obviously haven't been asking the right people."

Jade's smile was perfectly bland, and after so many years of acquaintance it still made Natalia want to shiver. "I beg to differ," he said lightly. "I believe we've asked just about every person in two countries."

"That's your problem, then." Luke met Jade's narrow look with the smirk still in place, and a vague kind of challenge in his eyes, and it was an effort to keep the name that Natalia couldn't help but think from coming to her lips as well. Luke was shaking his head a moment later, though, smirk fading out and being replaced by something milder. "All right, Guy," he went on, turning away, "would you mind going out and seeing how soon Noelle can be back in the air? I want us underway as soon as we can."

"Sure," Guy said uncertainly. "But don't you think we should wait until tomorrow at least? It's late, I'm sure you're tired after everything—"

"I can sleep during the flight," Luke said firmly. "We should get moving tonight, if possible."

"But where are we going?" Natalia asked.

"Nam Cobanda," Luke answered with a grin.

"We tried the Black Wings already," Jade said sharply. "We were told they had no information—whether that was true or not, I have my doubts, but the fact remains that Noir is not talking."

"We'll see," was all Luke said. Jade sighed faintly, but shook his head and turned away, ceding the argument. Guy slipped out the side door a few breaths later, and the others soon went their own ways as well, to prepare.

Heart still pounding, not sure what she was expecting to happen, Natalia approached Luke after the others had gone. "Luke?" she said, inwardly berating herself for how tentative her voice sounded.

He had started to turn away, but turned back at her call, and as he did so she searched his face—wanting, waiting, thinking perhaps that she saw-- there and gone, perhaps, and then it was just Luke looking at her with wide-eyed waiting, open and unguarded as _he_ had never been.

She smiled at him. "Never mind," she managed. "I should—go and prepare a change of clothes."

She fled.

It couldn't be possible, and she shouldn't have hoped, and damn her anyway for even wishing that it could have been different.


	8. Chapter 8

She'd honestly never expected to see him come walkin' through her door again. Which, right there, was a mistake, because she'd long ago learned not to _expect_ anything from him. He always managed to do exactly the opposite.

Still, it was a hell of a flashback, even with the new threads, because there was the blond boytoy hovering just behind his shoulder, and there was the little princess hanging back, looking all disapproving with her arms crossed under the chest she wished she had. All of them were there, even that cold bastard, the Malkuth soldier. She could have been happy never seeing _him_ again, but she knew the type and therefore knew he wouldn't do anything where there were any witnesses, so for the moment it was all right.

Not that she intended to let her guard down.

She held herself to just lifting a single eyebrow at the kid when he found her in her Isle's twists and caverns. "I knew you couldn't be dead," she drawled. "You've got a lucky streak a mile wide, kiddo."

"Hello, Noir," Luke said, and something in Noir froze at the sound of his voice. Because it sure had sounded an awful lot like the Boss.

It took her a second to catch her breath, and she flipped out her compact to fill the time. It was a long-engrained habit, started as a way of making sure no unscrupulous characters were sneaking up behind her, and carried on because it was fun to annoy people with. "What can I do for you, sugar?" she asked once she was reasonably sure her voice wouldn't waver.

He waved a hand to his companions. "They say they've been here before, so you know what I want."

"Ah," she drawled. "And if I didn't have the information to give to them, what makes you think that I have it now to give to you?"

The look he gave her said, very clearly, not to question his intelligence. It was a look she remembered very well. "I know you probably have your reasons for keeping quiet," he said, lowly, "but I can promise you that this is bigger than you think. Whoever you're protecting—it isn't worth it."

Even from him, that was a bit much. "You think so?" she asked, narrowing her eyes.

He stepped in closer, took her elbow and guided her away from the rest. If it had been anyone else, they would have lost a few fingers in the attempt, but he had her just enough off balance, just enough in doubt, that she went along with it. And she'd let the Boss get away with a lot of things that most people wouldn't dream. "Listen," he said. "I don't have the time to run around in circles turning over rocks and leaves to find these people. What they are doing needs to be stopped, for the sake of everyone; please believe me on that."

She hesitated again—damn the man for turning her so upside down, anyway. And hell, it really was him, wasn't it? Something in the eyes, the way they didn't flinch and didn't hide and demanded the same from everyone they looked at. "Some of my people follow this guy," she admitted. "If they get an army set after them—I don't want my people hurt, is all."

"They won't be," the Boss promised, "if we cut this entire thing off now. If we wait, it will end in another war, and this one won't stop until it's touched everything, including your home. You won't be able to hole up and wait this one out, Noir."

"How do you know?"

The Boss opened his mouth—and just for a second, his face _changed_, expression shifting and easing until he shook his head violently and winced, and was normal again. "I just do," he said shortly. "I need that information, Noir."

She looked at him for what felt like a long time, then shook her head slowly. "I don't think I fully understand what's going on here, but—" She gave him a slow smile, and out of the corner of her eye she saw the little princess twitch. "You're the boss, Boss."

"Thank you," he said quietly. She shrugged.

"Stick around, York's makin' the rounds, he'll know the latest news when he gets back. And don't bother pacin' around waiting, sugar," she said, a little louder as they walked back over to the rest of his group, "he'll be a few hours, anyway, and you look like you could use a nap."

He quirked a rueful little smile, and the boytoy muttered something that sounded like 'I told you so'. It was kind of endearing, really; she made a note to go try to hug him at some point, in gratitude. And because she hadn't seen him in a while, of course, and couldn't help but wonder if he still jumped as prettily as he used to.

A girl had to keep herself entertained somehow.


	9. Chapter 9

The biggest difficulty was in the approach—a big, noisy airship was hard to hide while trying to sneak up on the secret meeting of an underground cult, go figure. Which meant walking, which she'd kind of hoped she'd never have to do again. She was going to be _Grand Maestro_, after all; Grand Maestros didn't walk halfway across continents. They certainly didn't go wandering into forests after dark and trip over their own shoes, but she'd already come close to doing that a couple of times.

When she made that point to the others, though, all she got was grumpy old Jade telling her that she wasn't Grand Maestro yet, so wouldn't she please just keep walking and be quiet?

Bastard.

Luke was leading the way. Only it wasn't really Luke, was it? He'd been Luke in Baticul, most of the time, but he'd been more like Asch at Nam Cobanda, and she couldn't have been the only one who noticed the weird times when he spaced out and his eyes got all weird. It wasn't quite like the times when he used to have Asch or Lorelei or whoever talking in his head, but it was close, and it was enough to make her-- not _worried_, she wasn't _worried_, but it was definitely-- weird.

Luke-- maybe-Luke? Sort-of-Luke?-- motioned Jade to the front, and the two of them put their heads together over the little map Noir had provided them. It seemed pretty fishy, really, but everyone else was going along with it, so—and it really was the best lead they'd had in just about ever, so she supposed it was worth checking out.

Though she'd feel better if Luke had let them bring along that squad of soldiers Jade had suggested. Not that she didn't think they could take a few scrawny farmers hiding out in the woods, they'd handled worse in the past, but better to be safe, right? Only Luke had argued that more people made more noise, and if they scared their quarry off this time they might not get another chance. Which-- okay, yeah, he had a point.

So there they were, the six of them, tromping across the countryside trying to save the world. Again. A girl just couldn't get a break.

 Jade nodded at something, and Luke gestured the rest of them over as well. "Not far," he said quietly. "And we're still early for what Noir said was the meeting time. So Jade's going to take Natalia and Tear around to the far side." He pointed to the map. "Guy, Anise, you're with me. We'll stay out of sight and quiet until whatever's going to happen is happening, and we figure out who's the one in charge, then we go in and get him. Simple enough?"

"Even you can't screw this one up," Anise replied in as sweet a tone as she could manage, and was rewarded by a snort from Luke and a half-hearted swat to her shoulder, which she easily ducked. She stuck out her tongue at him for good measure before they all split up to start their big ambush.

When they got close enough, they found that the 'x' on the map corresponded with a big natural clearing in the woods. Impossible to say how anyone found the damn thing in the first place, but it was big enough to hold a fair number of people so it wasn't a bad site. For all that it wasn't the easiest to get to, it had enough landmarks to point the way-- hell, they'd managed to find it in the dark, and she remembered all too well that _some_ people in the party were a little directionally challenged— and it was right in the Theor Forest, easy access for people all through the northern part of Malkuth.

That part had really pissed off Jade, when he realized; it was easy to see in the way he went all straight-shouldered and glinty-eyed and smiled too much. She'd be pissed too, probably, if the guys she'd been searching for were setting up camp practically right under her nose.

Luke stopped just outside the clearing, pointed at a nearby clump of trees and gave her and Guy a questioning look. It was a pretty good hiding place, once they got settled; they were out of the way enough that they wouldn't get tripped over by anyone coming in, and they had a pretty good view into the clearing. Which was good, because not long after they got into position, a shadow detached itself from the forest to their right and came out into the open.

More and more began to arrive, drifting in out of the trees. Someone made a small fire in the centre of the clearing, under a cobbled-together shelter of thickly needled branches— that explained why they'd never seen anything from the sky, Anise thought sourly. Pretty clever, actually. It wasn't fair that they were _clever_.

It was all carried out in silence, which was completely freaking eerie, and eventually it was just— all of them sitting around, silent, waiting. And then one of them stood up, and Anise could almost _feel_ the attention in that clearing snap into place. Beside her, Luke went completely rigid.

"My friends," the voice drifted to them, "I am so pleased to see you here with me tonight. I am pleased to see so many believers still remain despite the forces arrayed against us."

"I'll show him force," Anise heard Guy mutter from the other side of Luke. "Looks like that's our guy, hunh?"

Luke didn't answer.

The man in the clearing paced a slow circle around the fire, around and again, slow and hypnotic. "You have come," he said, louder, ringing, "because you wish the guidance of the Score. Who would hear its wisdom?" And out of some fold of his clothing he drew out a long, slender shard of fonstone, glinting in the firelight.

"Maestro!" the crowd cried out, reaching forward for him. "Maestro, please!"

Anise shivered.

Luke jerked in place, just a little, then pushed himself off the ground and out of their hiding place, completely ignoring Guy's hissed curses. He walked right up to the so-called Maestro, his hands held away from his sides. "How about me?" he said, and yeah, that sounded kinda like Asch again, all challenging like that. "Will you read my Score?"

Luke stepped into the circle of firelight, and Anise couldn't figure out what looked weird about him until she realized that his eyes were kinda _glowing_, greeny-white like-- like something. Like swampfire or Rugnican mist-opals or the slick cool shine of fonstones. And his voice was wrong, too, it was definitely not like Luke, but not angry enough to be Asch, and—that really only left one option, and it sounded completely freaking crazy but it kinda made sense at the same time.

The gathered people were shrinking back, starting to panic, getting ready to run-- but there was the Colonel across the way, using his spear to block off the route of the one who'd got up the nerve to make a break for it. If Anise squinted, she could just see Tear in the shadows behind him with her staff at the ready, and Natalia beside her with an arrow in her bow.

The Maestro alone hadn't moved or reacted, watching not-Luke approach with an easy expression. "Be calm," he called to the people. "This too was foretold. You will leave here tonight unharmed, my word on it."

Not-Luke stopped a few paces away. "You knew we were here?" he asked. "Then you'll probably know why, too. We can't let you keep doing this, you know. One way or another, this stops tonight."

"I merely follow the Score's direction," the Maestro said, shaking his head. "My part is not yet played out. I'm afraid you will leave here disappointed."

"Will I now," not-Luke said with a hint of Asch's anger. "The Score tells you that, does it?"

"It does."

"Tell me this, then-- if the Score knows all and tells all, why the hell would anyone ever want to know it? Do you think these people here want to know the details of their lives that they haven't even lived yet? That tomorrow that guy's dog is going to die, that so-and-so's house will burn down this fall? The only way people get through life is by not knowing. Even that whack-job Mohs knew that. But you, you're damaging things you have no idea of."

Not-Luke's eyes were really bright. They really, really were. And it was hard to tell with him so close to the fire, but it kind of looked like the rest of him was glowing too, the way Luke used to when he went out of control. Which probably meant that her crazy theory was true, but mostly Anise had been trying not to think about that because it was just-- well, come _on_, if it was true then this Luke was actually--

"Would you want to know how _you_ die?" Lorelei challenged in the voices of the stars.

"I know already," the Maestro replied serenely. "The Score told me years ago."

"It told you one possibility. The strongest one, perhaps, but still only one of many. Because you believe in it, you make it become real. But what if the Score foretold something awful in your path? Wouldn't you want to change that?" Lorelei shook his head. "Wouldn't you want to believe you could?" Luke finished pleadingly.

"You speak blasphemy," Maestro said gravely, finally starting to show something like anger.

"It's just sense, you moron," Asch said with a hint of a growl, though it was gone again a second later. "I merely suggest that you should want to determine your own destinies, instead of being trapped into one path only."

"It is the only path!" the Maestro shouted. He took the final few steps towards Luke— Lorelei— _whoever_— and started to reach out.

And not-Luke's face flashed into Asch's fierce scowl just before he turned and crouched under the blow in a move very reminiscent of the Commandant. The Key of Lorelei made no sound as it drove smoothly through flesh.

The Maestro's eyes went wide. "But--" He looked down a the length of steel through his stomach, and fell to his knees as the strength left them. "That's not how--" he started weakly.

"Yeah, well," Asch replied flatly, "that's what we've been telling you."

And then the anger was gone and it was Lorelei again, looking down sadly at the Maestro as he crumpled to the ground. Natalia was looking on with both hands over her mouth, more than a little horrified; Tear's face was carefully blank, and Jade actually looked kind of amused. For her part, Anise thought that mostly she was glad this mess was over and she could start to make some real progress in Daath, which probably made her a bad person.

Oh, well.

Lorelei turned a slow circle and surveyed the rest of the cultists; most of them flinched under his gaze. "This is the fate he chose for himself when he started down this path," Lorelei announced in ringing tones. "All of you are free to choose something similar-- or something else entirely."

Anise wasn't sure how something could simultaneously be a threat and a reassurance, but that was, and it was brilliant. She would have to learn how to do that.

What was also brilliant was watching every last person in that clearing break ranks and run away home.

"Was that necessary?" Natalia asked in a small voice.

"They wouldn't have listened, otherwise," Jade said, shrugging, unconcerned.

Lorelei only looked a little regretful. "A less drastic example would never have worked," he agreed. "Without such a charismatic leader, and with this example hanging over them, the movement will never quite regain its power. There will be some lingering feelings about the Score, of course there will, but in time it _will_ fade, now. And eventually," he finished with a serene smile, "your futures will be your own."


	10. Chapter 10

_Your_ futures. Guy heard that and felt a little ill, because the implications seemed obvious, and it hadn't escaped his attention that Luke-- or Asch, or whoever it actually was behind that face-- was still kind of glowing. Like Luke's old hyperresonance, only ten times stronger. And it seemed to be getting worse.

As if to prove that true, Luke suddenly winced, one hand going to his head just before he turned to look pleadingly-- at Jade. "I'm nearly out of time," he said cryptically. "Manifesting like this is too difficult to maintain. I have control of the seventh fonon, but not the rest. Would you do the honours?"

Jade looked puzzled for about half a second, and then his face went slack in surprised realization. Of what, Guy didn't know, but Jade was the genius of the group so he supposed that was fair. Still, under any other circumstances, Guy would have had to comment on the way Jade was standing all wide-eyed and blinking, but Guy was mostly still caught up in wondering whether he was going to have to stand there and watch while his best friend was taken away, again. Assuming he'd ever really had him back at all.

Jade stepped in close to Luke, exchanging a few words that Guy didn't hear, then nodded sharply before lifting his hand as if preparing to cast an arte. Guy heard Jade shouting something-- he was sure he did, though the low roar that accompanied the sudden upwelling of light all but drowned out every other sound. It was enough like what had destroyed Van's perverted version of Hod that Guy had a moment of something approaching panic. If he could have moved under the pressure of whatever was going on, he would have run forward and thrown himself on top of Luke this time, if that was what it took.

When it faded, Jade was still standing, though a few paces back from where he'd been, half turned away and holding both arms up to shield his face. The Key of Lorelei was fused into the newly bare rock of the ground, standing upright, with little silvery cracks running away from it like roots.

And there were two bodies lying sprawled next to it. One was Luke, and the other--

Also Luke. Two Lukes, one of them naked. _A replica,_ Guy thought numbly. _Jade, what have you done?_

And then the naked one twitched, and groaned. "Damn it, dreck, what did you do this time?"

Two Lukes. _Two Lukes._

"Me? Why is it automatically me? And why are you _naked_?"

"Just give me your damned coat, already."

Behind him, Anise muttered something shocked and completely inappropriate; across the way, Natalia had both her hands clapped over her mouth, tears welling clearly in her eyes. For his part, Guy could only seem to stand, and stare, and think-- two Lukes. Two of him. _Both_ of him.

As before, it was Tear who finally stepped forward with a warm, peaceful smile, to welcome them home.


End file.
